عن أبي هريرة قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم

« إن الله تعالى طيب لا يقبل إلا طيا » 

Hazrat Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) said: “Allah, the Almighty, is tayyib (pure) and accepts only that which is tayyib.”

وإن الله أمر المؤمنين بما أمر به المرسلين فقال تعالى:  يَا أَيُّهَا الرُّسُلُ كُلُوا مِنَ الطَّيِّبَاتِ وَاعْمَلُوا صَالِحًا إِنِّي بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ عَلِيمٌ . وقال تعالى:  يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا كُلُوا مِنْ طَيِّبَاتِ مَا رَزَقْنَاكُمْ  

(رواه مسلم)

Allah has commanded the faithful to do that which he commanded the Messengers, and the Almighty has said:

“O messengers, eat from the good things, and act righteously.” (al-Mu’minoon:51)

“O you who believe, eat of the good things (tayyib)We have provided to you and be grateful to Allah” (al-Baqarah:172)

                                                                                     (Sahih Muslim)

In the life of a human being, food and all edible items are immensely important as they play a vital role in the development of human instincts and good manners. It is for this reason, Islam has adopted a very lofty and pious standard of processing food especially meat.  Islam has considered it appropriate that the food intake of the human being should be Islamically acceptable (zaki), clean, and Islamically pure (tayyib). 

Islam has prescribed special instructions in respect to the meat consumed by a Muslim.  This is to ensure that the growth resulting from the consumption of meat is guaranteed for the health of the body, safety of the nature of human beings, and protection of the soul and good manners.

What is Halal to eat?

• Halal is that which is permissible and lawful in Islam.
• The basic dietary laws for Muslims are:
  •  ONLY that which is tayyib (pure) is Halal (al-A’raaf:157)
  • That which is khabeeth (impure) is Haram (al-A’raaf:157)

What is Zabiha?

• Zabiha are the rules of slaughtering an animal to make it Halal for consumption.

Some Basic Principles of Eating Halal

• The general ruling in all things is that it is permissible (allowed), unless proven otherwise.
• The principle ruling in meat is that it is impermissible (haram), unless proven otherwise.
• “It is not necessary to consume all that which is halal, HOWEVER, it is absolutely necessary to avoid all that which is haram” - Shaikhul Islam Mufti Saeed Palanpuri, may Allah preserve him

The Conditions of Zabiha

1. At least THREE out of the FOUR main veins of the throat MUST be cut.
2. Mentioning the Name of Allah at the time of each slaughter
   1. “Eat not (of meats) on which Allah's name has not been pronounced, and surely it is a sin...” (al-An’aam : 121)
   2. Any animal upon which Bismillah is not mentioned intentionally at the time of slaughter, is considered maitah (carrion, or dead meat).  Maitah is just as haram as pork.
3. The butcher must be a Muslim or Believing Ahlul Kitab
   1. If one does not know who slaughtered the animal, further researched MUST be done before eating

Note: If any one of the above conditions is not fulfilled, the meat will be HARAM for consumption.

Some Benefits of Eating Halal and Harms of Consuming Haram

• Become mustajab ad-Da’wat (He Whose Dua is Accepted), for the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “purify your food (and as a result) you will become one whose dua are accepted.” (Tabrani, 6495)
• The Messenger (peace be upon him) mentioned (the case of) a man who, having journeyed far, is disheveled and dusty and who spreads out his hands to the heavens (saying): “O Lord! O Lord!” — while his food is unlawful, his drink unlawful, his clothing unlawful, and he is nourished unlawfully, so how can he be answered!” (Muslim, 1015)
• The body which has been nourished with Haram WILL NOT ENTER JANNAH. (Baihaqy)
• The Prophet (peace be upon him): “I swear by Him in whose hands the soul of Muhammad lies, verily a servant (of Allah) puts a haram (impermissible) food morsel in his stomach (due to which) no good deed is accepted from him for 40 days” (Tabrani, 6395)